Student Loan

Student Loans

Long gone are the days of free higher education in UK. Today going to university is an expensive investment in the UK as students face increasing tuition fees and costs of living. Fortunately, the UK government recognises how important university graduates are to the economy and have created a financial aid system to help make university more accessible.
There are three types of financial aid offered by the UK government to students:

Tuition Fee Loans

Maintenance Loans

Maintenance Grants

Types of Financial Assistance

Tuition fee loans are designed to cover the whole cost of a student's tuition fee. These loans are available to both full-time and part-time students and are paid directly to the student's university or college. This loan needs to be paid back in the future.

Maintenance loans are awarded to full-time British students who are less than 60 years of age. This loan is paid to the student at the beginning of the semesters and is deigned to help them pay for their maintenance, so course materials, accommodation, rent, bills and food. The amount of loan amount a student is entitled to depends on a number of factors including:

Whether they are living at home or away from home

Whether they are living away from home in London

Whether they are abroad for a year of their UK course

While everyone is entitled to a set amount, you may be able to apply for additional support if you come from a low-income background.

Unlike the maintenance loan, a maintenance grant does not need to be paid back, These grants are awarded according to how much money a student's family earn a year. If the household income exceeds £42, 620 they will not receive a grant. However, a student's family income is less than £25, 000 they are entitled to £3,387 a year.

Additional Financial Assistance

If you are from a low-income family you maybe able to apply for additional financial assistance from the government to make higher education a more economically viable.

Students with dependants can also get additional financial help, such as grants which can help them arrange from childcare while they are attending their classes.

Disabled students are also eligible for extra funding. Whether you are physically disabled, mentally disabled or have a learning difficulty, you can get funding to aid your studies.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that your college or school may also provide additional financial support, such as bursaries for students who come from low-income backgrounds.